With the advent of cable services networks, cable customers have grown accustomed to receiving a variety of television programming from numerous broadcasting sources. In recent years, technology advances have enabled customers to receive an even greater variety of products and services through cable services networks. Modern cable services networks provide traditional video television programming, telephone services, high speed internet access, electronic mail services, video-on-demand, information services, and the like. Through the use of set-top boxes (computing systems), cable services providers can provide interactive television services to customers. Such interactive television services allow customers to interact directly with services providers in response to services and product offerings presented to the customers through their television sets.
Unfortunately, according to prior systems, once a customer decides to order an offered or promoted product or service, or if the customer desires information on a pending work order associated with a previously ordered product, service or upgrade, the customer must call the product/services provider to complete an order or to determine the status of a pending work order. Often when the customer calls the product/services provider, the customer is placed on hold for a lengthy period of time. Because many calls to product/services providers are based on impulse buying a calling customer may hang up rather than stay on hold resulting in a lost sale. Even after the customer is connected to a sales agent, the customer may have to spend a lengthy period of time providing information to the sales agent. And, in many cases, the customer calls the product/services provider to check the status of a previous order, but finds the difficulty of receiving the status information unacceptable.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for methods and systems for allowing cable services customers to order offered products and services and to check the status of pending work orders associated with previously ordered products and services via an automated interactive session between the customer and the cable services provider. It is with respect to these and other considerations that the present invention has been made.